


dance like nobody is watching

by wavverlyearp



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: Actress Waverly, Angst and Fluff and Smut, F/F, college student Nicole
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-03
Updated: 2019-01-27
Packaged: 2019-02-10 07:16:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,876
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12906906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wavverlyearp/pseuds/wavverlyearp
Summary: Waverly knew she couldn't fall for Nicole, not when the world is following your every move, but you don't choose to fall in love, it just happens and there is nothing she could do about it.orthe one where famous actress Waverly Gibson falls in love with your average college student Nicole Haught but can't let the world know.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been wanting to write this AU for quite some time and instead of doing my work due tomorrow morning, I wrote this (we love a responsible adult).
> 
> So, please enjoy the first chapter of dance like nobody is watching, aka the au that nobody asked for.
> 
> x

 

_we're not lovers, we're just strangers_

 

* * *

 

“Waverly, over here!”

 

“Waverly, this way.”

 

“Give us your best smile!”

 

Waverly smiled, the lights flashing all around her. Thousands of photos being taken of her as she stiched on a smile.

 

“Look this way a second.”

 

“Amazing, hold that pose!”

 

Occasionally Waverly would turn to give them a different angle, or a slightly different smile, until she was moved down the carpet and the flashing faded away. She was lightheaded, as usual, but there wasn’t time to stand and wait for the feeling to stop, she had a line of people waiting to interview her. So, Waverly walked down the line, she was asked the same questions in a different way, a rehearsed answer in her head before the question was even asked, a smile stretching on her face and a laugh she didn't recognise echoing from her.

 

“Hello, I’m Jennie and today I’m going to be talking to Waverly Gibson, who stars in the new movie Lost Her Way. Waverly, can you tell us what it feels like to be nineteen and nominated for the golden globe awards?” The interviewer asked, pointing the microphone towards Waverly who took a deep breath before answering.

 

“It’s truly incredible and such an honour, I can’t put into words how much it means to me to even be nominated for something like this.” Waverly giggled, her bubbly attitude she was known for radiating out of her.

 

“It really is amazing, at nineteen. You were only sixteen when you started acting right?”

 

“Yes, I was.”

 

“And in three years you’ve become one of Hollywood’s most famous actresses.” The interviewer laughed and Waverly joined in.

 

“I wouldn’t go that far.” Waverly responded, her smile staying wide as she waited for the next question.

 

“So, the fans want to know, are you team Richard or team James?”

 

 _Team neither_. Waverly thought to herself, but she couldn’t say that, her agent might actually kill her.

 

“Well, for Lily I’d have to say team James, but personally I’m team Richard.” Waverly said, and the interviewer turned to the camera to speak about the answer she had given.

 

“Miss Gibson!”

 

"Over here!"

 

Waverly didn’t respond until someone put their hand on her shoulder, pulling her slightly further down the line towards the next interview.

 

_Miss Gibson._

 

Waverly still found it difficult to adjust to the name, it was so strange not carrying to stigma of an Earp. She had to change it when she moved to L.A, away from Purgatory. The Earp name was laced in bad luck, scarring memories and awful rumours. Even though Purgatory kept to itself, the Earp name had managed to get out of the town and into the world. The media loved the crazy family who saw demons, there were films based off the stories of the Earp curse, the myth that haunted her family name. The name had defined Waverly from the moment she was born, so the moment she left she dropped the Earp, picked up Gibson and started again.

 

New city, new name, new Waverly.

 

The interviews went on until Waverly was pulled into the cinema and shown to her seat, being greeted by everyone she walked past. People congratulating her on her nomination, on the movie, on the TV show she was recently cast in. Those who she idealised saying her name with a glint in their eye of admiration. 

 

When Waverly had imagined her life at nineteen, this is not what she had pictured, at all.

 

Eventually the film began and Waverly was shown to her seat. During the film she did her best to look everywhere except the screen. She couldn’t watch herself, and Waverly was in every other scene of the movie, so she looked around at the people watching her on the screen instead of the screen itself. It felt weird, watching your hero’s smile as they watch you preform. Waverly wasn't sure if she would ever get used to this.

 

Thankfully, after what felt like hours, the movie finished and the room broke out into applause. 

 

Waverly was never getting used to this.

 

Waverly and her co-stars walked out first, the cameras flashing, blinding them. They were guided back to their cars where their drivers were waiting for them. Waverly still found it strange that she had a personal driver, but she was beyond grateful for him.

 

“How was the premier Miss Gibson?” Joey asked as the door of the car was shut, the flashing still coming through the tinted window.

 

“For the thousandth time, please just call me Waverly, and it was okay I guess.” Waverly said, her smile fading as they drove away.

 

“Where are we heading?” Joey asked, looking back at Waverly through the mirror, already knowing the answer to his question.

 

“Do you need to ask?”

 

* * *

 

“Just message me when you want me to come and pick you up.” Joey said as the car came to a stop.

 

“Thanks, I will do” Waverly replied, glancing out the back window before stepping out of the car, making sure no one had followed her from the event. 

 

Waverly let out a sigh of relief as the similar sound of distant music flooded her system, the ground shaking slightly with the beat, the air thick with alcohol. It felt safe. Comforting almost.

 

When the world was following your every move, it was hard to have alone time. Time when Waverly didn’t feel like a smile had to be on her face otherwise everyone questioned if she was depressed or hiding something, or if she spoke to any guy, rumours would spread like wild fire that they were a thing. Waverly wasn’t naïve enough to believe this didn’t happen to everyone to an extent, but sometimes it felt like the rest of the world seemed to know things about her before she knew them herself. 

 

Waverly had found a small club on the outskirts of town where she could be free. The darkened atmosphere tended to hide her from the crowd, and the regulars who knew her didn’t post online where she was, she trusted them. It was an escape for when it all got a little too much.

 

Waverly checked around her a few more times before heading to the doors of the club, the bouncer letting her in with a small smile. Everything always felt the same when Waverly walked through the doors and it was a feeling that Waverly lived for.

 

* * *

 

As the alcohol mixed into her veins Waverly gained some confidence that the world had managed to knock out of her. Waverly felt herself half walk half stagger to the dancefloor, and soon enough she had a crowd around her cheering as she pulled out every trick dance class had taught her.

 

Eventually Waverly got hot and the sweat trailing down her forehead got too much, but she wasn’t going to stop. At least until she saw someone’s phone. If they took a photo, recorded her, that was it. She would lose her only place of freedom. She couldn’t.

 

The crowd didn’t move but Waverly suddenly felt like they had closed in on her, the pressure in her head increasing. It became too much.

 

Waverly pushed through the crowd, moving away from the dance floor, stumbling slightly as she pushed the door of the bathroom open.

 

Waverly splashed her face with water from the running tap, looking at herself in the mirror. It was moments like this when Waverly questioned if she had made the right decision. Moments when she looked in the mirror and saw her life, what it could have been like if she hadn’t gone into acting, if she had left home and gone to university instead. If she was normal. But before Waverly’s thoughts could dive into her past and question her future, a voice spoke up, causing the brunette to jump back slightly.

 

“Those were some impressive dance moves back there.” The woman moved to stand behind Waverly as she spoke, making eye contact through the mirror. The woman was tall, towering slightly over Waverly, her hair was a vibrant shade of red, contrasting with her pale skin.

 

“Why thank you.” Waverly said with a confident smile.

 

“You look familiar.” The woman pondered, her head tilting slightly as she tried to figure out where she knew Waverly from.

 

“Yeah I get that a lot.” Waverly said, turning around to face the taller woman. “I’m an actress, you might have seen me in one of my movies?”

 

“Don’t really watch movies.” Nicole fired back, not leaving any space between her and Waverly’s words. “You kind of look like one of my friends.”

 

Waverly had not been expecting that. At all.

 

 _Who doesn’t watch movies?_ Waverly thought to herself.

 

“Me.” Nicole replied, Waverly very quickly realising she had asked her question out loud opposed to in her head. Waverly tried to figure out how much she had to drink, the alcohol perhaps effecting her self control more than she had thought.

 

“Well, I figured that out.” Waverly whispered, turning around to see Nicole smiling down at her.

 

“I’m Nicole by the way.”

 

Nicole. Waverly smiled, a real smile, something rarer than you’d think.

 

“And you are?” Nicole asked, her eyes tracing Waverly’s figure, not hiding what she was doing at all. Waverly felt a shiver travel down her spine. The world was watching Waverly and had no effect, but one look from this Nicole and her body was reacting.

 

“Waverly.”

 

“Waverly.” Nicole repeated, her lips curving upwards, her head tilting slightly to the side again. Waverly thought it was cute.

 

Both women stood for a moment, the sound of slightly heavy breathing and racing heartbeats filling the empty room, the deep thud of music coming under the bathroom door.

 

“I’m gonna head back out there.” Waverly said, not moving, Nicole’s eyes glued to her own.

 

“Okay then.” Nicole’s eyes glanced towards the door before moving back to Waverly. It took a moment for Waverly to move, walking best she could back out to the club, swinging the door open before looking back at Nicole who was stood watching her.

 

Waverly let the bathroom door swing shut, walking back to the bar and downing another shot. She looked back to the bathroom door to see Nicole walking out, and Waverly made a decision.

 

_I’m not leaving here tonight without her._

 

Maybe it was the alcohol talking, or maybe it wasn’t, but once Waverly had set her mind to something, it was going to be done. In this case, literally.

 

Waverly made her way back to the dancefloor, her hips swaying with every step, her eyes locked on Nicole, making sure the redhead was watching closely.

 

And thankfully she was.

 

So, Waverly put her plan to action, mixing in with the crowd, and unlike minutes ago she didn’t dance to stand out, she was dancing to fit in, praying Nicole would join her.

 

And thankfully she did.

 

Soon enough Nicole had reached Waverly within the crowd, and the two were dancing, their bodies touching, hearts pounding hard, breathing sharply and quickly, hands on one another. For a moment, Waverly forgot where they were, the people surrounding them, she could have sworn for a second it was just Nicole and herself on the dancefloor, at least until Nicole leaned down to Waverly’s ear, bring her back to reality as she whispered “Do you want to get out of here?”

 

Waverly swallowed the lump in her throat.

 

“Like you wouldn’t believe.”

 

Waverly felt Nicole’s fingers lace between her own, and before she knew it she was being dragged through the crowd and out the back door of the club. Nicole must have come here before to know that this back exit even existed, but Waverly had never seen her here before. She would have remembered.

 

Waverly let the thought leave her mind as Nicole dug her keys from her pocket, and in the distance a cars lights flashed as Nicole pressed the button.

 

Waverly doesn’t remember anything between walking towards the car, hand in Nicole’s, to now, her back pressed up against the closed door of Nicole's place and the redheads hands tightly gripping her hips.

 

Before Waverly could even process her surrounding properly, Nicole’s lips found hers, sending a jolt down Waverly’s spine. Their kiss didn’t start slow, it was heated, all tongues and teeth, as if they had been starving of each other’s touch. Nicole’s hands ran through Waverly’s hair, then tracing her jaw and running down her body, leaving a trail of fire on Waverly’s skin, heat settling between Waverly’s legs.

 

Nicole pulled back, Waverly following Nicole’s lips with her own but before she could she felt her top being pulled over her head, being quickly discarded on the floor and seconds later Nicole’s lips were on Waverly’s lips, earning a gasp from the brunette. Nicole sucked on her pulse point, Waverly knew there would be a bruise there in the morning, and the thought sent sparks through her, her hands grasping Nicole's hair, pulling slightly, the redhead groaning against Waverly’s neck as she did so.

 

“Bedroom?” Nicole asked, her eyes following her voice and going soft. She had pulled back from Waverly, her hands either side of Waverly, pinning her against the door, but Nicole wanted to be sure. Waverly couldn’t help but smile at Nicole, holding back a small laugh.

 

“Yes, definitely.” Waverly whispered back, the atmosphere having momentarily changed. The heat being replaced with something more, something Waverly couldn’t explain.

 

“Are you sure?” Nicole leaned down and traced Waverly’s collarbone with her lips as she spoke, biting down slightly at the end of her sentence, quickly smoothing the mark with her tongue after.

 

“ _God Nicole_ ,” Waverly hissed, her legs nearly giving out on her. “I’m sure.”

 

Nicole didn’t ask again, bringing her lips back to Waverly’s, the heat returning and their kiss was soon all tongues and teeth once more, moans and hisses filling the room. Waverly arched her back off the door and into Nicole, her thigh slotting between Nicole’s slightly parted legs, earning a sharp inhale from Nicole who did her best to not grind down on the brunette’s thigh.

 

“Jesus Waverly, you’re gonna kill me.” Nicole whispered against Waverly’s lips, dragging the brunettes bottom lip with her teeth. Before Waverly had a chance to throw back a sarcastic response, she felt Nicole’s hands grab her ass, lifting her into her arms, Waverly’s legs automatically wrapping around Nicole's waist. It was almost as if Waverly weighed nothing, Nicole easily walking up the stairs with Waverly in her arms, her legs only faulting slightly when Waverly began to nibble on her ear lobe, breathing heavily on her neck.

 

Nicole threw Waverly down onto her bed, nearly knocking the air out of Waverly. Nicole smiled, an almost predatory smile as she looked up and down at Waverly. Waverly suddenly felt self-conscious, lying in her black laced bra and pink mini skirt which was hitched up her thighs, Nicole’s eyes watching her. Just as Waverly was about to cover herself, Nicole kneeled on the bed, crawling up slowly, leaving a trail of kisses across Waverly until their lips were together once more. Waverly didn’t remember making the decision to take Nicole’s shirt off, but before she knew it the she had undone the buttons and the shirt was hanging loosely on Nicole’s shoulders. But before Waverly pushed the shirt off, she traced her fingers down Nicole’s chest, between her breasts and down the where faint abs were piercing through skin. Waverly smiled as Nicole’s muscles jumped under her touch.

                                                                                                          

Waverly was about to repeat the movement with her fingers when Nicole grabbed her wrist, swiftly pinning it above Waverly’s head. Nicole was smiling, her eyes dark, full of lust. Waverly moved her other hand to Nicole’s shirt, pushing it back a little but soon enough Waverly’s other hand was pinned above her head. Waverly was practically panting by this point, her back arching into Nicole.

 

“You okay baby?” Nicole asked and Waverly laughed, her lack of breath making it difficult, it was more of a shaking exhale than a laugh, the word baby going straight to her core.

 

“I’m more than okay.” Waverly responded, her voice low, almost growling. Nicole didn’t waste any time, pushing herself down onto Waverly, her thigh between Waverly’s, a groan escaping the brunettes mouth and Nicole’s lips swallowed the sound. Nicole’s hands running down Waverly’s arms and through her hair and then down to her bra, pushing it up and out of the way. Then Nicole drew away from Waverly’s mouth, moving to her chest and softly kissing the underside of her breast. Waverly looked down, making eye contact with Nicole through her lashes just as Nicole enclosed her lips around Waverly's nipple. Waverly back bent sharply into Nicole, a deep growl escaping her chest. Nicole took this opportunity to snake her arms under Waverly’s back and unhook her bra, her tongue circling Waverly’s hard peak as she did so, Waverly moaning a string of incoherent noises.

 

Waverly furrowed her eyebrows when Nicole pulled her head up, instantly missing the sensation of Nicole's mouth on her skin, but her frown soon became a smile as Nicole pulled Waverly’s bra off and then Nicole’s shirt came off and both items were discarded on the floor.

 

“You are so fucking beautiful.” Nicole whispered, Waverly feeling her cheeks redden. She had spent the last three years receiving compliments from everyone she met and they were sweet, but they never really had much effect, she had learnt to almost ignore the media. But those few words that Nicole had said meant more to Waverly than anything anyone had said to her all her life.

 

Waverly very quickly and smoothly flipped her and Nicole’s position, Nicole raising her eyebrow, surprised by the smaller girl’s strength. Waverly straddled Nicole, sitting up and leaning back, Nicole staring at her chest as she did so.

 

“You gonna ride me?” Nicole asked, her voice laced in sarcasm, hiding the slight plead in her sentence.

 

Waverly laughed, “maybe if you _beg_ for it?”

 

* * *

 

Waverly woke up early, the sun only just rising and seeping under the blind in what Waverly assumed was Nicole’s room. Waverly felt Nicole’s arm around her waist, her body pressed against her back, and Waverly sighed. She didn’t want to leave, she would love to stay and wait for Nicole to wake, to talk and find out more about this woman. But she couldn’t.

 

Gently, Waverly moved Nicole’s arm and got off the bed, the cold air hitting her naked body and her head pounding slightly. Waverly tiptoed around the room to collect each item of clothing that had been left the night before, pulling the crumpled outfit back on. Waverly turned to look at Nicole and she couldn’t help but smile as last night played back in her head, memories making her face flush and a heat set low in her stomach.

 

Waverly stood for a moment, not wanting to leave. She had done this before. Slept with someone, a stranger, and left before they woke up. It was easier that way. Waverly knew she couldn’t have a relationship with someone who wasn’t famous. She grimaced at the word. But she was right, Waverly didn’t want to have the media looking at her partner, following them, asking them questions constantly. Waverly couldn’t do that to someone. Anyone. Maybe someone who understood, someone who loved her. But as she looked at Nicole she knew she had to leave, she couldn’t do this to her.

 

But as Waverly reached the door, she stopped, seeing the desk covered in pens and she had an idea.

 

* * *

 

Nicole woke up to an empty bed, her arms finding nothing but empty sheets around her. When Nicole opened her eyes, she saw the bright pink sticky note stuck on the pillow. Rubbing her eyes and sitting up, Nicole read the note;

_Nicole._

_Last night was amazing. I didn’t want to wake you but I had to get to set early._

_See you around,_

_Waverly xx_

 

Nicole smiled before collapsing back into her bed, pulling her duvet around her. Last night really had been amazing. Incredible really, and Nicole was sure she would see Waverly around.

 

Nicole pulled out her phone, typing Waverly into google and the suggestion doing the rest.

 

Waverly Gibson.

 

There she was. Nicole scrolled through the images, smirking to herself as she had flashbacks to last night. Nicole hadn’t realised just how famous Waverly was, but the girl had managed a few million followers on her social medias, and she was only nineteen. Nicole scrolled through news articles and fan pages and every other website dedicated to Waverly. Soon enough Nicole knew everything there was to know about Waverly Gibson, from her favourite movie to her apparently crazy family. It wasn’t until Nicole looked up and saw the clock on her wall she realised how late she was, already having missed two classes this morning. The redhead jumped out of bed and pulled on any clothes she could find, looking over at the sticky note one last time before leaving for class.

 

Nicole smiled to herself as she left her apartment.

 

 _See you around._  

 

Nicole was going to make sure of it.

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

_I will wait for you, because there is no one else I want_

 

* * *

 

 

Nicole crumpled another piece of paper up in her hand, aiming and throwing it into the bin, smiling to herself when she got it in, knowing her time playing basketball in high school had clearly payed off. That was the fourth paper ball in a row she’d managed to get into the bin in the last twenty minutes of trying to study. Nicole knew that doing a degree for the sake of doing a degree had been a bad idea, she should have gone straight into the police academy, ignored her parents. But she didn’t, and here she was, screwing up paper into balls and pretending the bin was a hoop.

 

“Nicole?” Chrissy whispered, making Nicole jump in her seat. She hadn’t notice Chrissy approaching her, and she was now stood in front of the desk Nicole was sat at, a impatient look on her face.

 

“What?” Nicole questioned as Chrissy stood with her eye brows raised, waiting for Nicole to respond.

  
  
“I said, do you want to come to get a coffee with me?” Chrissy repeated, looking around at the eyes now glaring at them for making noise in the silent section of the library.

 

“Oh, yeah sure.” Nicole whispered, she would take any excuse to leave the library and stop studying, well, pretending to study, and a coffee with Chrissy was a perfect one. Nicole closed her notebook and her laptop, shoving it into her backpack, hitting the table as she swung her backpack onto her back, causing anyone who wasn’t already looking at them to turn around and stare.

 

“Shit, sorry.” Nicole mumbled, her cheeks burning up slightly, Chrissy grabbing her arm and dragging her outside. Once out of the library Chrissy laughed, pushing Nicole slightly.

 

“You’re almost the same colour as your hair.”

 

“Shut up.” Nicole grumbled but she couldn’t help but laugh, Chrissy’s laugh was infectious.

 

“So, how was last night?” Chrissy asked as their laughter died out.

 

“Um, it was pretty good.” Nicole’s head suddenly hit with moments of last night, and if she hadn’t already been blushing, she definitely would be now. “How was your night?” Nicole asked, not wanting Chrissy to notice her cheeks burning a whole new shade of red.

 

“It was alright, would have preferred to be out with you though.” Chrissy sighed and Nicole hummed in agreement, her mind still occupied with thoughts of the night before, of Waverly. Nicole wondered where Waverly was now. She had written on the note that she had to be on set, or had she just said that as an excuse to leave before Nicole woke up? Nicole let the thoughts circle her mind as Chrissy ordered herself a coffee and Nicole a cookie, like always, and Nicole went and sat down at a table in the corner of the café whilst Chrissy waited for her drink.

 

Nicole pulled her phone out while she was waiting, unlocking it to see Waverly smiling back at her, her google search from earlier still on her screen. Nicole scrolled through images, smiling to herself. Waverly was truly perfect. Before Nicole knew she was making the decision, she was on Waverly’s wikipedia page, reading about her life, her career, anything she could find.

 

“What are you smiling at?” Chrissy asked, sitting opposite Nicole, placing down her coffee and cookie on the table. Nicole locked her phone and shook her head.

 

“Nothing.” Nicole said, grabbing her cookie.

 

“Okay then.” Chrissy didn’t believe her, but the blonde had other things on her mind rather than whatever Nicole was looking at on her phone. “You want to go see a movie tonight?” 

 

Nicole did want to go see a movie, but not tonight, the redhead already had plans tonight, plans that involved praying and hopefully bumping into Waverly again.

 

“I’m busy tonight, I can do tomorrow though?” Nicole said as smoothly as she could, Chrissy raised her eyebrows, questioning her.

 

“What are you doing tonight?” Chrissy asked and Nicole knew she couldn’t say she was going out because Chrissy would invite herself along, and as much as she would love to go out with Chrissy, she didn’t want to be pulled away from another chance with Waverly. So, Nicole went with an excuse she knew Chrissy wouldn’t believe, but wouldn’t question further.

 

“I’m studying.” Nicole said as seriously as she could. During her three years at college, Nicole could not remember a time she had said that she was studying in her own time. In fact, Nicole was pretty sure she had never gotten through ten minutes of studying in her life.

 

“Studying?” Chrissy said with a small laugh and a sip of her coffee. Nicole just nodded. “Okay then, tomorrow’s good.”

  

* * *

 

Waverly couldn’t concentrate. She kept messing up her lines, despite knowing them all perfectly the day before. She was getting frustrated with herself, and she wasn’t being smooth about it. After an hour and a half of trying to shoot a scene, the director pulled her aside into a room.

 

“Waverly, what’s going on?” Dean said as he closed the door, Waverly ran her hands though her hair, exhaling loudly as she did so.

 

“I don’t know.” Waverly sighed, even though she had a small idea what was going on. She had spent the entire morning trying to shake thoughts about Nicole and her perfect lips and _her legs and_ \- _shit._ Waverly cursed herself as she tried to bring her focus away from Nicole. Something she was finding next to impossible. 

 

“Do you need the day off or what?” Dean asked, his voice concerned. Waverly never forgot her lines. She was known for it, she pushed herself so hard, it's how she went from nothing to who she is today. Dean was worried, and Waverly was starting to get worried to.

 

_What the fuck has that woman done to me?_

 

“I don’t know.” Waverly repeated, because she didn’t know if having the day off was going to help or not.

 

“Go back to your trailer for half an hour, go over your lines again and if you’ve not got it nailed after that we will push back a day.” Dean said and Waverly nodded.

 

“Yeah okay, thanks.” She knew that pushing production back a day may seem small but in it could cost the studio thousands of dollars, and Waverly did not want the reputation of being the silly nineteen-year-old who couldn’t pull herself together and cost the studio thousands of dollars.

 

Waverly walked back to her trailer, trying her best to read her lines off the script in her hand, but the constant noises of people talking into head-sets and constructions of sets were making it difficult to say the least. But even when Waverly was back in her trailer, she still couldn’t get a hold of her lines, the words leaving her head as soon she opened her mouth to speak. She felt tense, on the edge of screaming. She looked at the clock on her shelf. It was midday, and her first thought was that twelve hours ago she was pinned under Nicole.

 

Just the thought of Nicole sent a rush of heat to Waverly’s core, and suddenly Waverly realised why she was so tense. She had spent most of the morning replaying the events of last night with Nicole and her body was beyond worked up, pleading for a replay. Waverly was not on the edge of screaming, but something else entirely and as her hand slid down her own stomach, she prayed this would relax her enough to get her through this one scene. After that, well, maybe she’d just have to go find Nicole.

 

* * *

 

Nicole stood at the bar, downing another drink as her eyes scanned the crowd. She knew that the chances of Waverly being here two nights in a row was rare. Especially because she was who she was, coming to the same place over and over was dangerous, especially if the paparazzi followed her. But still, Nicole was here with the hope that Waverly would walked through that door and take her anywhere but here.

 

“Haught?” Shae’s voice made Nicole jump slightly, turning back to see Shae stood behind the bar, a smile on her face. “I thought it was you.”

 

“Shae, good to see you.” Nicole said, looking over Shae. They had shared halls in the first year of college, and they’d gotten to know each other pretty well over that year.

 

“You too.” Shae replied, her eyes glancing over Nicole as she bit her lips slightly. Nicole had made more of an effort than usual with her appearance. She was wearing her black doc martens, a pair of black skinny jeans and her favourite flannel, and clearly Shae appreciated the outfit.

 

“I didn’t know you worked here.” Nicole said, keeping the conversation going instead of watching Shae check her out.

 

“Yeah, not been here long, a couple weeks now.” Shae said as she wiped down the surface of the bar down and before Nicole could say anything else someone further down the bar called for the bartender. “That’s me, see you around Nicole.” And with that Shae was gone, leaving Nicole alone again.

 

Nicole turned back to face the door, waiting for a miracle to happen and for Waverly to walk through the door. Nicole laughed at herself as she realised she would probably stand and stare at the door until the early hours for a woman she met once and barely had a conversation with before sleeping with her.

 

“This is fucking insane.” Nicole said to herself, turning back to the bar, jumping out of her skin when a familiar voice spoke up next to her.

 

“Tell me about.” Nicole’s neck nearly snapped at the speed she turned to see Waverly stood next to her, a huge grin on her face. “Nicole.”

 

“Waverly.”

 

“How have you been these last twenty-two hours?” Waverly asked, smirking to herself as Nicole’s eyes traced her figure and her slightly revealing outfit she’d pick out just over an hour ago.

 

“I’ve been…distracted.” Nicole said, choosing her words carefully, wanting to know if Waverly had spent the entire day thinking about her too, but by her appearance at the club, it was sad to say they were on the same page. “How about yourself?”

 

“The same.” Waverly replied causally. Nicole wasn’t sure if the pounding in her chest was her heart racing or the vibrations of the music pumping around them running straight through her, but as Waverly sat down on the bar stool next to Nicole and her skirt rode up her thigh, Nicole decided it was most probably a combination of the two.

 

“Can I buy you a drink?” Nicole said, forcing her eyes back up to Waverly’s face.

 

“I was kind of hoping we could go someplace else?” Waverly’s words were laced with suggestions that went right to Nicole’s core, and Nicole was not about to say no.

 

They walked out the back door of the club, their bodies brushing up against one another’s, their intentions clear.

 

“You want to go back to mine?” Nicole asked, pulling her keys out her pocket, Waverly smiling as she nodded her head.

 

The ten-minute drive back to Nicole’s seemed to last hours, Nicole concentrating more on Waverly’s fingers drawing endless patterns on her thigh than the road, not that she was complaining.

 

* * *

 

 Waverly wasn’t sure what had taken over her, why her mind seemed to be on loop, her only thought being the woman in front of her, but it was, and now that Nicole was right here, unlocking her door, Waverly was not going to waste any time at all.

 

The second Nicole took her keys out her apartment door and stepped inside, Waverly stepped into her space, slamming the door closed and shoving Nicole up against it, her hand firmly pinned either side of Nicole. Waverly could see the redhead’s chest heaving up and down as she tried to catch her breath, Waverly could practically hear her heart racing and a huge smirk broke out on her face.

 

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” Nicole whispered, her voice going straight to Waverly’s core.

 

“Maybe I am,” Waverly whispered back, moving her lips to Nicole’s neck and planting a gentle kiss, “But I am pretty sure you are enjoying it more.” Waverly spoke against Nicole’s neck, the vibrations from her words causing Nicole’s body to shudder slightly. “That’s what I thought.” Waverly said as she pulled back from Nicole's neck, a smirk still stitched on her lips, and she waited, watching Nicole squirm. She knew Nicole was probably stronger than her, and if she wanted to she could have easily flipped their positions, but she didn’t. So, Waverly waited, waiting for Nicole to snap, waiting for her to urge forward take her, _hard._

 

And, after what felt like an eternity, she did.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, and as always I hope you enjoyed.
> 
> next chapter contains major fluff and cuteness so be ready for your heart to melt <3
> 
> x


	3. Chapter 3

_maybe everything was meant to be this way_

 

* * *

 

 

Nicole rolled over, expecting the bed to be cold, empty, just like before, but instead she felt a warm body pushing into hers. Nicole smiled, placing her arm gently over Waverly’s side, letting her fingers trace small circles on her skin.

 

“Morning.” Nicole whispered against the brunettes neck, Waverly replying with a small grumble rolling over, her eyes still closed, pushing herself up against Nicole. “You sleep okay?” Nicole asked, a smile spread on her face as Waverly blinked her eyes open slowly, reflecting Nicole’s smile swiftly after doing so.

 

“I slept really well thanks.” Waverly said, her voice hoarse both from the fact it was early in the morning, and all the screaming of Nicole’s name she had been doing a few hours earlier.

 

“Good.” Nicole said under her breath, watching as Waverly let her eyes drift closed again. She looked so beautiful, even without all the hours of makeup artists trying to make her _perfect_ , her hair was a mess, tangled and spread across the pillow, but she still looked flawless. Nicole couldn’t understand how she had ended up here, twice. Waverly knew nothing about her, and before Nicole had spent a few hours searching her name, Nicole hadn’t known anything about Waverly either. But here they were, and as cliché as it sounded, everything just felt _right_.

 

“Nicole?” Waverly mumbled, bringing the redhead out of her thoughts and back down to earth.

 

“Waverly?” Nicole’s words laced a teasing tone that made Waverly begin to blush.

 

“Please tell me you have some food here.” Waverly asked, opening her eyes slightly, and Nicole couldn’t help but laugh to herself.

 

“Of course I do, I’ll go make you some breakfast.” Nicole said, attempting to sit up but Waverly’s arm quickly tightened around her waist, Nicole still surprised by Waverly’s strength. “If you want me to get you food, you’re going to have to let me go.” Nicole watched the smile creep up onto the younger girls face as she contemplated how desperate she was for food. After a moment Waverly’s grip loosened and Nicole sat up, Waverly pulling to covers around herself as Nicole swung her legs off the bed, looking for her clothes which had been discarded around her room the night before.

  

Nicole found one of her shirts on the floor and pulled it over her head, trying her best to ignore Waverly’s eyes burning into her back. She quickly pulled on a pair of boxer shorts from her draw before heading out to her kitchen and checking the contents of her fridge. Living with two other college students meant the fridge was practically empty, along with the apartment, her roommates still not back from the night before. Nicole grabbed the eggs and milk from the fridge, praying she had enough flour left to make a couple pancakes.

 

After a few minutes of searching through her cupboards, Nicole managed to find flour and a frying pan, smiling to herself in victory as she started making the batter. Whilst making the pancakes, Nicole didn’t hear Waverly’s movements from her room, not until the brunette walked into the kitchen wearing nothing but one of Nicole’s old grey shirts, which was slightly too big for Nicole, so came to Waverly’s mid-thigh.

 

“What are you making?” Waverly asked as she walked over into the kitchen, jumping up onto one of the counters, the shirt sliding up her thigh even further. Nicole felt her mouth go dry.

 

“Pancakes.” Nicole’s voice broke half way through the word, Waverly smiling wickedly and raising her eyebrow, acknowledging the affect she was having on the redhead but ignoring it.

 

“Amazing.” Waverly said, crossing her legs on the counter, watching Nicole’s eyes glance over her legs, smiling smugly as she did so. “Don’t you need to flip it?” Waverly asked, gesturing towards the pancake that was starting to smoke, Nicole quickly flipping the not so golden-brown pancake.

 

“I’ll have that one.” Nicole said, trying to ignore the color rushing to her cheeks.

 

The two of them sat in the kitchen, eating pancakes, talking, laughing, for hours. Nicole asking the few questions the internet couldn’t answer, Waverly asking anything she wanted to know.

 

“So, why is someone like you in a club like that?” Nicole asked, passing Waverly a cup of steaming coffee.

 

“What do you mean, _a club like that?”_ Waverly questioned.

 

“It’s just, you could be off partying with Beyoncé or Angelina Jolie and you’re at a club on the outskirt of a college, I just wanted to know why.”

 

“For starters, Beyoncé’s parties aren’t that great.” Waverly said, taking a small sip of her coffee as Nicole’s mouth fell to the floor.

 

“Wait, yo-you’ve been to Beyoncé’s party?” Nicole stuttered, her eyes wide and her heartbeat racing.

 

“No, but that was funny.” Waverly said laughing as Nicole’s face fell.

 

“That was cruel.” Nicole said flatly, making Waverly laugh more, and Nicole couldn’t help but join in, the brunettes laugh was infectious.

 

“Anyway, back to your question, it’s just one of the few places I can go without a camera in my face or someone begging for my autograph. It’s somewhere I can be myself without the entire world knowing where I am and what I’m doing, not that I’m complaining or anything. I worked hard to get to where I am and I wouldn’t trade the world for it, but sometimes it’s nice to just have some space.” Waverly looked up from the counter that her eyes had drifted to as she spoke to see Nicole beaming back at her, as if Waverly had just told her she had wandered the world to find her, not why she goes to a club occasionally.

 

“What?” Waverly questioned, Nicole shaking her head slightly.

 

“Nothing, you’re just very down to earth. I’d expect someone worth more a few million would be a little big headed.”

 

“I’m worth more than a _few_ million sweetheart.” Waverly fired back, earning a chuckle from Nicole.

 

“I know, I googled it.” Nicole said quickly as she grabbed the empty cups and placed them in the sink, pretending not to notice the shocked expression from Waverly’s face.

 

“You googled me?” Waverly asked, her voice not giving away whatever she was currently thinking.

 

“Yeah, thought it’d be good to know who I was slept with.” Nicole said as she walked around to the stool Waverly was sat on, standing between the brunette’s legs.

 

“You didn’t know who I was?” Waverly asked as her fingers brushed the back of Nicole’s legs, making Nicole shiver slightly.

  
“I mean, you looked familiar, kind of like my friend.” Nicole teased, flashbacks from the a few nights ago surrounding her words. Waverly stood up, trying to gain some height but she was still a few inches shorter than the redhead. Nicole wasn’t sure who leaned in first, but before she knew it their lips crashed together, pushing and pulling for dominance, hands soon exploring already exposed skin. Waverly’s hands quickly found their way under Nicole’s shirt, her fingertips tracing the outline of Nicole’s abs, Nicole letting out a small moan as Waverly’s hands skimmed the underside of her breasts.

 

Waverly pulled her head back slightly, manging to say, “I really need to go” between kisses and desperate pulling at clothing.

 

“Then go.” Nicole said as she kissed down to Waverly’s jawline, continuing with small bites and kisses down the column of Waverly’s neck, the brunette holding back a moan as she did so. Nicole sucked on Waverly’s collar bone, the younger woman’s hips jolting forward in response, and Waverly didn’t need to look down to know Nicole was smiling, proud of herself, of the response she could get out of Waverly.

 

 _One hour won’t kill anyone._ Waverly thought to herself as she pulled Nicole’s top over her head.

 

* * *

 

“It’s like you want them to just kill your character off!” Mercedes hissed as Waverly downed another cup of coffee, staying up for most of the night when she had a twelve hour shoot the next day was a very bad idea. Not that Waverly regretted it, at all.

 

“They can’t just kill her off.” Waverly sighed, turning to face her manager, the makeup artist quickly puling her face back to where it needed to be.

 

“The show hasn’t even aired yet, they still have three weeks till the premiere, pretty sure they have time to kick you off.” Mercedes fired back, earning another sigh off Waverly. “What’s going on with you? You forgot your lines yesterday, you’re late today? What the hell happened to the Waverly Gibson who showed up at my agency with nothing but a sweet smile?”

 

“God you are being _so_ dramatic, I’m still here, that’s still me.” Waverly said, trying to hide the guilt in her voice. She knew she didn’t have time for distractions, she had worked so hard to get to where she was and she owed people like Mercedes, people who gave her a chance, she owes them everything.

 

“You better be right.” Mercedes said as she smiled softly, turning to leave the trailer. “I better not here of you being late or forgetting lines again Waverly.”

 

“You won’t.” Waverly called back as the trailer door clicked closed, letting out a long exhale, looking back into the mirror as the makeup artist painted on her face. Waverly barely recognised herself at this point, her face covered in layers of foundations and concealer, hiding the imperfections that nobody wanted to see. Waverly would always smile and watch the woman in the mirror copy her.

 

“They’re ready for you Miss Gibson.” A tech guy said as he stuck his head in the door of the trailer.

 

“Coming.” Waverly replied, getting up, taking one last glance at herself before she left. She might not recognise herself anymore, but maybe that wasn’t a bad thing. She had always prayed for a new beginning, desperate to start again, change her fate so to speak, and she had.

 

Twelve hours felt like twelve years when you add hours of stunts and trying to recall lines you started learning an hour before you needed to recite them. Waverly walked back to her trailer, her legs feeling like lead balloons and her eyes barely staying open. Once back to her trailer Waverly grabbed one of her many blankets from her drawer, picked her phone up off the side and slumped down onto her couch, wrapping herself up in as much as the blanket as she could.

 

Waverly turned her phone on, rubbing it in the blanket as she waited, the screen cold from being left in the trailer all day and most of the night. After what felt like hours, Waverly’s home screen flashed brightly, nearly blinding the brunette. The photo of her and Wynonna when they were only kids staring at her, and she smiled, like she always did when she opened her phone. She loved Wynonna, and she missed her, but she had already lost her before she left Purgatory. Waverly sighed as she saw the time, three am was far too late to be awake after a night of barely any sleep, again, Waverly did not regret that decision at all.

 

Just as Waverly was about to put her phone down, a text came through from an unknown number, and Waverly clicked on it, confused. She had a work phone, and then her private phone, which very few people had the number for.

 

_Hey, Waverly, it’s Nicole x_

Waverly couldn’t stop the huge smile from emerging on her face. She had forgotten that she had put her number in Nicole’s phone as she left her apartment earlier that day, it felt like days ago. Even though it was three in the morning and Nicole had sent that message hours ago, Waverly still typed out her reply in the hopes and prayers that Nicole was still awake.

 

_Hey, sorry I didn’t reply, been on set all day._

Waverly waited for a minute, and if she hadn’t have been so tired, she might have waited all night, but soon enough sleep took over and Waverly’s dreams meant that Nicole could be there with her, instead of the two of them a city and a lifestyle apart.

 

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me? the worst at updating? I know and IM SORRY

 

_I'm falling fast, god I hope this lasts_

 

* * *

 

 

Nicole had trouble concentrating during her lectures, mostly because she didn’t care about the degree she was doing to please her parents, but today she was struggling more than usual. Maybe it was because her mind had been focused on other things lately, or maybe it was the phone buzzing in her lap every few minutes with messages that made her cheeks flush.

 

Waverly had been texting her since she woke up this morning, and what had started off as an apology for falling asleep during their conversation the night before had turned into something very, very different.

 

“Hey.” Chrissy said as she slumped down into the empty seat next to Nicole, startling the redhead. “What did I miss?”

 

Nicole looked down at her empty notepad and back up at Chrissy before replying “nothing important.”

 

“Thank God, I really need to pass this class.” Chrissy said with a wide smile, Nicole returning the smile before looking back down at her phone. The truth was, Nicole had no idea what Chrissy had missed, because Nicole really wasn’t listening to the old college professor stood at the front of the lecture hall. She knew that she needed to pass this class as well, and she knew that a degree in criminology wasn’t too far away from what she wanted to do, but Waverly Gibson was a distraction and a half, and Nicole couldn’t help but get distracted by her.

 

_Waves: I need you right now._

Nicole bit her lip and inhaled a shaky breath before typing out a reply.

 

_Nicole: I can’t do right now, but how about tonight?_

It was a long-shot, and Nicole knew it. Waverly would have been on set for at least sixteen hours, she’d be exhausted and Nicole was sure that the last thing Waverly want to do was be with her. But before Nicole could dwell on it, her phone buzzed in her lap.

 

_Waverly: tonight sounds great. I will message you when I’m done here x_

Nicole didn’t think she cared that much, how could she, she’d only known Waverly for a week, but the huge smile spreading across her face as she read that message told Nicole was already falling fast.

 

“Who are you messaging?” Chrissy asked, leaning over closer to Nicole, trying to look at the redhead’s phone. But Nicole was quick, locking her phone and putting it in her pocket before Chrissy could see.

 

“Nobody.” Nicole said flatly, hoping Chrissy wouldn’t question her.

 

“Doesn’t seem like nobody to me.” Chrissy said with a wink before turning her head back to the professor. Nicole let out a small sigh as Chrissy looked away. She normally told Chrissy about everything, but, for a reason Nicole couldn’t quite place her finger on, she wanted to keep this to herself. For now, at least.

 

* * *

 

“Late to set, not once, but twice, what the hell is going on with you?” Mercedes, asked. Waverly could barely keep her eyes open, the script in her hand she was supposed to be checking over was a blur, her managers voice ringing through her head, the words not making any sense. Mercedes barely visited Waverly on set, but this was the second visit in a week, so Waverly knew something really wasn’t right.

 

“Waverly?” Mercedes said, clicking her fingers in front of the brunette’s face.

 

“Yes?” Waverly said, snapping back to reality. Mercedes was pacing around her trailer now, stress taking over her body.

 

“What the fuck is going on?” Waverly could hear the aggravated tone in Mercedes voice, making her shrink into herself a little. Disappointing Mercedes was something that could keep Waverly up at night, the guilt eating into her slowly until she was crying at her office the next day. This woman had taken Waverly on at sixteen, taken her into her arms and built her into who she is today. Waverly Gibson, a name the world knows, and it was all because of Mercedes. Waverly owed everything to this woman, and seeing her angry because of Waverly’s selfish actions made the brunette feel awful. In fact, awful didn’t begin to cover how Waverly felt right now.

 

Within seconds Mercedes could see how guilty Waverly felt, quickly pulling the brunette into a tight embrace.

 

“I’m just worried about you. You can always talk to me if something’s wrong, okay?” Mercedes said softly as she pulled back from Waverly, the brunette nodding her head.

 

“Okay.” Waverly replied, casting her eyes down to her feet as she felt herself relax. In that second, Waverly opened her mouth, to tell Mercedes about Nicole. Not because Nicole was a problem, so to speak, but because Mercedes was one of the only people Waverly could talk to and could trust. But right as she tried to get the words out, Waverly’s phone buzzed and she forgot what she was going to say, her mind consumed with the possibility that Nicole had text her.

 

“Who’s that?” Mercedes asked as Waverly picked up her phone, seeing a text from one of her co-stars and a small frown coming across her face.

 

“No one.” Waverly responded, trying to keep the disappointment out of her voice.

 

“So, everything’s okay? I’m not going to get another phone call from anyone asking where my shining star Waverly Gibson has gone?”

 

“Nope. I’m good, think I just need a break maybe, there’s just a lot right now.” Waverly said, sitting down on the small couch, fitted in the corner of her trailer. Mercedes joined her, placing her hand on top of Waverly’s with a small smile on her face.

 

“There is a lot, and I get that.” Waverly could practically hear Mercedes reshuffling Waverly’s schedule in her head as the redhead paused. “I can get you the rest of this week off if you finish shooting today, _if_ you promise my smiling star will be back on Monday?”

 

“Yes, definitely.” Waverly said, a smile on her face. That gave her four days off. That was four days she could spend with Nicole. “Thank you so much.”

 

“No problem.” Mercedes said as she stood up, holding her hand out and pulling Waverly up too. “You better get back out there then kiddo.”

 

With that, Waverly left her trailer, counting down the hours until she could see Nicole.

 

 _When did everything become about Nicole?_ Waverly asked herself as she walked back to set, makeup artists following her and trying to fix her makeup, Waverly too lost in her thoughts to even notice.

  

* * *

 

 

Nicole had lost track of time; the thought of Waverly taking over her mind as her roommates slept. The gentle buzz of her phone bringing her out of the daydream she had slipped into.

 

_Waverly: I’m outside, didn’t want to knock and wake anyone up x_

Nicole grinned at her phone like an idiot at how thoughtful Waverly was before going to her door and slowly opening it.

 

“Hey.” Waverly whispered, stepping into Nicole’s apartment. “Sorry it’s so late, we got delayed, technical problems and what not.”

 

Nicole looked down at her watch, noting that it was nearly three am before responding to the brunette; “Don’t worry about it, totally worth the wait.”

 

“I’m worth the wait, am I?” Waverly asked, her eyebrows raising as she spoke, sliding her arms around Nicole’s waist.

 

“So worth it.” Nicole said with a small laugh before leaning in and closing the distance between herself and Waverly. Their kiss was gentle, Nicole’s fingers stroking Waverly’s jawline, but the kiss didn’t stay that way for long, the heat growing between them, hands pulling at clothes and teeth dragging on lips.

 

The two of them tried to move themselves to Nicole’s bedroom without pulling apart, which ended up with Waverly pinned against the wall next to Nicole’s bedroom.

 

Neither women had realised quiet how loud they had become, until a bedroom door opened and Nicole very quickly jumped back from Waverly, seeing her roommate Rosita rubbing her eyes as she walked out of her bedroom.

 

“Nicole what th-“ Rosita stopped in her tracks, her mouth falling to the floor as her eyes fell on Waverly. “Waverly Gibson?”

 

“Hi.” Waverly said quietly, Nicole debating if the blush on her cheeks was embarrassment or a result of Nicole’s actions only a moment ago. _Not that that’s important right now,_ Nicole thought to herself.

 

“Holy fucking shit, am I dreaming or something?” Rosita said more to herself than the two others stood in front of her.

  
“Waves, can you just give me a sec? I’ll meet you in my room.” Nicole said, Waverly nodding before opening the door to Nicole’s room and disappearing inside.

 

“Nicole Haught, how the fuck did you pull that one?” Rosita said, a wicked smile on her face.

 

“Don’t. I need you to just pretend you didn’t see… _that_.”

 

“How could I forget that I just saw _Waverly Gibson_ in my living room Nicole? She’s a goddess.” _Tell me about it,_ Nicole thought, pushing that aside for now.

 

“I know, and I will explain in the morning, I promise. I just need you to swear you are not going to tell anyone about this.”

 

“About what? The fact one of this generations biggest stars was in my apartment, or the fact that you’re sleeping with her.”

 

“Rosita” Nicole said warningly, Rosita putting her hands up in a mocking surrender.

 

“Chill, I saw _nothing_.” Rosita turned back to her bedroom as she said; “But I expect all the details tomorrow.”

 

“Fine.” Nicole sighed, turning back to her own room before Rosita added.

 

“And an autograph.”

 

“You’re pushing it now.” Nicole laughed.

 

And with that Rosita was gone. Nicole opened her bedroom door quietly, desperately trying not to wake up her other roommate. Rosita knowing was bad enough, Chrissy knowing was so much worse.

 

“Sorry about that.” Nicole whispered, sitting down next to Waverly who had spread herself across Nicole’s bed.

 

“It’s okay.” Waverly whispered back, silence taking over for a moment. “She’s not going to tell anyone, is she?”

 

“No, she won’t, I promise” Nicole assured Waverly, placing her hand on Waverly’s thigh, the brunette shivering from the touch.

 

“Good.” Waverly said, her voice deeper than usual, a smirk growing on her innocent face as Nicole’s fingers started to trace meaningless patterns on Waverly’s thigh.

 

“So, where were we?” Nicole asked, suddenly pushing Waverly down onto the bed, catching the brunette off guard, but within seconds she regained her composure.

 

“I think you were telling me how I was worth the wait?” Waverly’s sentence was accompanied with a wink, which did far more to Nicole than she’d care to admit.

 

“Of course.” Nicole said, punctuating her words with kisses, “Now I remember.”  
  
“Well, isn’t that convenient.” Waverly replied, clearly making an effort to sound like Nicole’s actions weren’t affecting her. She was failing.

 

“I can forget again and stop if that’s what you want?” Nicole’s words were laced in a teasing tone as she pulled away from Waverly, making sure that they weren’t touching at all.

 

‘Don’t you dare.” Waverly groaned, surging up and dragging Nicole back down onto the bed with her.

 

And in this moment, Nicole lost track of time once more, but she does know that Waverly was _definitely_ worth the wait.

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so it's been some time (again) BUT I stg now that I'm done with you are my secret, this is my priority and you shall have weekly updates until it's done. 
> 
> (sorry if you had to reread or like you gave up on this pic cause same, if you're new then hello ignore this and let's pretend I update regularly)
> 
> <3

_but I can't help falling in love with you_

 

* * *

 

 

When Nicole woke up, Waverly was still by her side, the brunettes breathing slow and steady, their limbs intertwined. Nicole made a mental note that she could _definitely_ get used to this before she slowly got out of her bed, Waverly rolling over, still fast asleep.

 

Momentarily, Nicole had forgot about the incident the night before, but walking into the kitchen and being greeted by the smug smile of her two roommates reminded her.

 

“Good morning Nicole.” Chrissy said, her perfect teeth being flashed towards Nicole, “How did you sleep?”

 

“Pretty well thanks, yourself?” Nicole replied, trying to take a nonchalant approach the situation at hand.

 

“I slept well thank you.” Chrissy responded, taking a sip from the mug in her hand, Rosita doing the same to try and hide the laughter that was threatening to spill out of her.

 

Nicole pulled two glasses out of the cupboard, her two roommates watching her in silence as she headed to the sink to fill them.

 

“So, how long have you been fucking Waverly Gibson?” Chrissy said just as Nicole took a gulp of water, the redhead nearly choking due to the bluntness of the question.

 

Both Chrissy and Rosita laughed to themselves as Nicole tried to smoothly cover up the fact she nearly spat water across the kitchen.

  
  
“Um, a week or so.” Nicole said, avoiding eye contact with her roommates. The three of them were pretty open with each other, Chrissy especially so, and whilst Nicole didn’t think either of them would be particularly offended that she didn’t share this with them, she doubted she would ever hear the end of it.

 

“And when were you going to tell us?” Rosita asked as Nicole walked back towards her bedroom, turning around and flashing a smile at Rosita instead of answering her question.

 

“This isn’t the end of this conversation Haught!” Chrissy yelled as Nicole reached her bedroom door.

 

“Oh I don’t doubt that.” Nicole yelled back before opening her bedroom door. She was greeted with Waverly’s soft eyes watching her, a small smile on her face as she blinked slowly, adjusting to the gentle light coming from behind the curtains.  
  


“Sorry, did I wake you?” Nicole said, putting down the glass of water on her bedside table, climbing back into her bed.

 

“Yeah but it’s fine.” Waverly said quietly, her voice filled with sleep, a yawn following her sentence.

 

Nicole can’t help the smile spreading on her face as she looks at Waverly. She looked so peaceful like this, half awake, her eyes desperately trying not to flutter close.

 

“Stop it.” Waverly mumbled, pulling the cover over her face, Nicole putting her hand over the brunettes and pulling it back down, Waverly resisting as best she could.

 

“Stop what?” Nicole questioned, a smile still spread across her face.

 

“Looking at me.” Waverly replied, the top of her head out from under the cover.

  
  
“And why would I _ever_ stop looking at the beautiful vision in front of me.” Nicole whispered, pulling the cover back down so that she could kiss Waverly, the brunette instantly responding, her entire body waking up in a split second.

 

And just as Waverly’s body woke, Nicole pulled away, a smug smile on her face as Waverly pouted.

 

“I need to go shower before my class.” Nicole explained, walking towards her bathroom, “Care to join me?”

 

“I’d love to.” Waverly said, her phone ringing as she sat up. “I’ll be there in a second.” Waverly said apologetically, knowing she had to answer her phone. Nicole winked at her before heading into the bathroom, throwing her top behind her and onto the bed. Waverly suddenly hated whoever was on the other end of the phone.

 

“Hello?” Waverly answered, not bothering to check the caller ID, she was far too focused of catching a glimpse of Nicole through the crack in the bathroom door.

 

“Waverly, it’s Mercedes, I know I said you had a few days off, but I need you to go to a premier tomorrow night.” Waverly sighed, she’d been hoping to spend the few days she had off with Nicole, but this was going to put a stop in her plans.

 

“Yeah that’s fine.” Waverly said, she knew that these events are good for publicity and she shpuld be grateful, but that didn’t mean she always wanted to go, especially when she could be spending time with the incredibly beautiful redhead who was currently throwing each item of clothing she was previously wearing into the bedroom.

 

“Okay, I’ll send you times once I’ve booked the flights, it shouldn’t be too long. I’ll give you details on the plane but as a heads up I’ve organised you to go with Champ Hardy and-“ Mercedes was cut off by Waverly who suddenly zoned into the conversation.

 

“I’ll be going with who now?”

 

“Champ Hardy.” Mercedes repeated, Waverly waiting for a clarification of who that actually was. “Seriously? Jesus Christ Waverly, he’s America’s newest sweetheart.”  
  


“And I’m going with him why?” Waverly said, hoping that Mercedes previous comment was sarcastic.  
  


“Because the fans will _love_ it.” Mercedes said, Waverly could hear her excitement through the phone. “There are already people shipping you two online.”

 

“What…” Waverly wasn’t sure how to finish that sentence, Mercedes thankfully continued over Waverly.  
  


“If you ran your own social media accounts you’d know this.”

 

“I’m not having this conversation right now.” Waverly said, feeling a headache already kicking in, it was far too early to be stressed out.  
  


“Well then, tell me it’s all fine and I’ll stop.” Mercedes said, her words laced with a _fuck you I win_ attitude.

 

“Fine, just let me know the times as soon as you know.” Waverly said with a sigh, hanging up the phone and losing herself in her thoughts. _Who the fuck is Champ Hardy,_ Waverly thought, quickly typing his name into her phone and being met with the most basic looking white guy she had ever seen. “Fantastic.” Waverly said under her breath, locking her phone, ready to collapse back into the bed when Nicole spoke up.

 

“You coming?” Nicole was peering around the door, hiding herself but Waverly knew she was naked, the sound of shower running in the background reminded Waverly that she was supposed to join Nicole.

 

“No, but I will be in a minute.” Waverly said with a smirk, Nicole blushing at the innuendo, the conversation between Mercedes and Waverly quickly forgotten.

 

* * *

 

 

“So, if you don’t have to be on set, what do you want to do today?” Nicole asked, pulling a top over her head, Waverly’s gaze was fixed on Nicole’s abs and the brunette clearly wasn’t listening to Nicole. “Waves?”

 

“Yes.” Waverly said confidently, her body jumping as if she had just come out of some sort of trance, she shook her head slightly, grounding herself before adding, “What did you say?’

 

“I said, what do you want to do today?” Nicole sat down next to Waverly on the edge of her bed, the brunette quickly moving to straddle Nicole.

 

“You.” Waverly whispered, pressing her forehead against Nicole’s her eyes drifting from Nicole’s to her lips.

 

“I have _never_ met anyone with a sex drive as high as yours.” Nicole whispered, gaining a smirk from Waverly.

 

“What can I say, it’s just your effect on me.” Waverly said as she closed the gap between them.

 

What starts off as a slow and gentle kiss quickly becomes heated, Waverly’s hands swiftly finding their way under Nicole’s shirt, causing Nicole to let out a small gasp.

 

“Your hands are so cold.” Nicole said as Waverly left open mouth kisses down her neck, and in response Waverly flattened her hands against Nicole’s stomach, earning a hiss from the redhead.

 

When Waverly tugged the bottom of Nicole’s top up, she felt her hands being stopped. She looked up at Nicole with her best puppy dog eyes, praying that she wasn’t about to be stopped, but Nicole held Waverly’s hands within her own.

 

“Baby, what do you actually want to do today?” Nicole asked, Waverly trying to pay attention to what came after ‘baby’, the nickname not helping the ache growing between her legs.

 

“Was ‘you’ not an acceptable answer?” Waverly said, tracing meaningless patterns on Nicole’s palm.

 

“It is, but I just thought we haven’t gone a real date or anything before and that might be nice, obviously we don’t have to if you don’t wat to I just thought-“

 

“Nicole,” Waverly said, raising her hand and putting a finger gently over Nicole’s lip to stop her from talking. “a real date sounds amazing, but-“ Waverly watched as a flood of panic entered Nicole’s system, Waverly instantly holding her hands to calm her whilst speaking; “I can’t go out anywhere without someone recognising me and I really don’t want to drag you into this whole being followed by a camera everywhere thing, trust me, it is not something you want.”

 

“We don’t have to leave here to have a date, we can watch a movie and eat take out if you’re good with that?” Nicole said, a huge smile breaking across Waverly’s face.

 

“That sounds perfect.” Waverly said, her chest warm with admiration for Nicole. "Wait, don't you have class?" Waverly asked, remembering Nicole mentioning it before their shower.

 

"Yeah, but why would I go to class if you're here." Nicole said with a wink, making Waverly's cheek blush.

 

* * *

 

It had not been Waverly’s idea to watch this movie. In fact, Waverly had pleaded against watching this movie, but when Nicole pouted and said pretty please, Waverly’s heart turned to mush and she gave in.

 

“Dear God tell me it’s almost over.” Waverly said, the sound of her voice mumbled by Nicole’s chest, which she had buried herself in.

 

“You’re in it, you should know if it’s almost over.” Nicole laughed, ignoring the grunt that came from the woman who was practically sat in her lap.

 

“I hate you.”  Waverly said, still refusing to look at the screen.

 

“Yeah sure you do.” Nicole laughed, reaching for a piece of pizza, quickly realising that the brunette leaning on her was restricting her reach. “Babes, you need to move for a second.”

 

Reluctantly Waverly moved off Nicole, peering at the screen and sighing when she saw her scene was over.

 

“I can’t believe you have this movie on DVD.” Waverly said, picking up the case and taking a look. It was her first ever film, she was sixteen and completely oblivious to what the world of fame was really like. She was so excited for the film to come out, to go to the premier, for her photo to be taken, to be somebody.

 

“I stole it from Rosita.” Nicole explained, “We don’t have to watch the rest if you don’t want to.”

 

“I mean, there are better things we could be doing.” Waverly said, her tone clearly suggestive, her eyes drifting over the length of Nicole’s body as she spoke.

 

“You’re right.” Nicole replied, her voice low, her eyes darting between Waverly’s lips and eyes, leaning closer towards the brunette. But before their lips met, Nicole leaned past her, grabbing another DVD off the side of her bed, “We could be watching this instead.”

 

Waverly recognised yet another movie from her early career and groaned as she took it from Nicole’s hand, throwing it across the room.

 

“Absolutely not.” Waverly said, doing her best to keep her face straight and not laugh.

 

“You’re cute when you’re pretending to be mad.” Nicole said with a smug smile, Waverly’s smile breaking out across her face.

 

“You are the worst girlfriend.” Waverly said causally as she leaned back on the bed, before she realised what she had said.

 

_girlfriend._

Nicole had frozen, her mouth hanging slightly open.

 

Waverly had been actively avoiding this conversation, and by the look on Nicole’s face, so had she.

 

“I’m the worst what now?” Nicole said slowly after a moment, a huge smile spreading across the redhead’s face.

 

“Shut up.” Waverly mumbled as she put her face in her hands to hide the shade of red that was starting to appear in her cheeks.

 

“The worst what?” Nicole said again as she moved closer to Waverly, pulling the brunettes hands away from her face.

 

“Girlfriend.” Waverly whispered, ignoring the flushing of her cheeks and the urge to bolt towards the door.

 

“Is that your way of asking me to be your girlfriend?” Nicole titled her head to the side as she asked, making this moment a thousand times softer than it already was.

 

“Maybe.” Waverly said, a smile creeping on her face, reflecting the one still beaming on Nicole’s.

 

“Maybe?” Nicole repeated, leaning closer to Waverly until their foreheads were touching.

 

“Will you be my girlfriend Nicole Haught.” Waverly said through a deep breathe, letting herself being vulnerable even though she already knew the answer.

 

“Gosh, I feel so rushed, I don’t know!” Nicole said, leaning back and throwing her arms in the arm dramatically, Waverly hitting her on the arm in response.

 

“I take it back then.” Waverly said, crossing her arms and doing her best to keep a straight face, ignoring the smile tugging up the corners of her mouth as Nicole got closer once more.

 

“I would love to be your girlfriend Waverly Gibson.” Nicole whispered before connecting their lips in a gentle kiss.

 

Before she knew what was happening, Waverly was lying on her back, Nicole lying on top of her, looking down at her girlfriend.

 

Nicole had no idea how, but in the short space of a few weeks, Waverly had managed to make her head spin and her heart melt, and suddenly Nicole knew that this, _this_ was something that wasn’t going away.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed that chapter, and I promise there will be an update a week today (if not pls come harass me in the comments or twitter)
> 
> let me know if you enjoyed this chapter or the fic so far, or yell at me for not updating in forever :)
> 
> x


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm only two days late with an update, which is high key impressive for me tbh
> 
> enjoy <3

 

_we keep this love in a photograph_

 

* * *

 

The cameras flashed, blinding Waverly, a sensation the brunette was far too familiar to. She could barely see ahead of her, the line of people simply became a blur of light calling her name, telling to smile, to look over her, to turn, to lean closer to Champ.

 

She did what they asked, she always did, leaning closer to the actor, the cameras flashing quicker.

 

The was the last place she wanted to be. In fact, the only place she wanted to be was with Nicole, but she couldn’t be. Nicole had classes to go to, a life to live, and Waverly had _this_.

 

Once the cameras died down their names were called, they were walked further down the stream of red below their feet, where more cameras waited, questions on the tip of the interviewers’ tongues, ready to ask questions that Waverly had no desire to answer.

 

_“So I see that you and Champ Hardy are here together, is there something going on there that you’d like to tell us about?”_

_“I love your dress, tell us where you got it?”_

_“I wasn’t aware that you and Champ were friends, or more than friends?”_

_“Waverly Gibson and Champ Hardy, something that we didn’t see coming, tell us how you two met.”_

Waverly watched as Champ was asked about his new upcoming show, about his work, his interests, whilst Waverly was simply asked about her clothes and Champ.

 

She didn’t say anything though, like Mercedes had always told her, that’s just the way it is.

 

Waverly had begun to accept that, laughed off her and Champ being an item and ignored the wink he gave when she said it. She listed the designer labels she’d memorised hours before hand and watched as the interviewer stopped listening.

 

She had come to promote her show, whenever there was an opportunity she would slip it in, try to talk about how excited she was for it, but the questions always went back to Champ and his show.

 

Once they got passed the sea of questions, they made it inside, Champ sliding his arm around her waist as he greeted another actor, one Waverly knew vaguely but couldn’t place, not that she cared, her skin crawling from Champ’s touch. All she cared about was this night ending, and getting out of Champ’s grasp.

 

“I’m just going to go to the ladies’ room.” Waverly said politely as she slipped from Champ’s arms, the man giving a nod of acknowledgment.

 

Once away from the crowd, Waverly let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, something she had found herself doing more often than not. The brunette locked herself in a cubicle, pulling her phone out of her clutch bag, letting out a sigh of relief as she saw Nicole’s name on her screen.

 

_Nicole: hope it goes well tonight, see you at mine when you’re done??_

Waverly couldn’t help the huge smile break across her face as she read the message.

 

_Waverly: can’t wait_

Once the message sent, Waverly went to put her phone away and go back out, but the phone buzzed in her hands.

 

_Nicole: shouldn’t you be on a red carpet, not texting me?_

_Waverly: probably, I’d rather talk to you though_

_Nicole: we can do that later, alongside some other stuff I hope_

_Waverly: that depends on what you have in mind?_

Before Waverly got a chance to see Nicole’s reply, a voice broke out in the silent, and what Waverly had assumed was empty, room.

 

“Waverly, are you okay in there?” Champ asked, his voice echoing as he stood at the door of the restroom, not being able to enter the room, something Waverly was grateful for as she had a moment to get the blush creeping up her chest under control.

 

“Yes, sorry I’ll be out in a minute.” Waverly said as she left the cubicle, quickly checking herself in the mirror before leaving, ignoring the way her pupils had dilated.

 

She walked out with a smile on her face and Champ smiled back, his eyes tracing Waverly’s figure and it took everything for Waverly not go back into the cubicle.

 

* * *

 

 

“Is that Waverly?” Rosita said as she slipped onto the couch next to Nicole, the redhead locking her phone, praying Rosita hadn’t read anything she had just sent.

 

“Maybe.” Nicole said as nonchalant as she could, Rosita simply raising her eyebrows in response.

 

“She’s in head over heels already.” Chrissy laughed, looking up from her text book.

 

“I can see that, she’s smiled more in the last week than her entire life.” Rosita said, the two women laughing as Nicole went bright red in the face.

 

“That’s not true.” Nicole said, ignoring the way her voice squeaked as she lied.

 

“Well, I’m just glad you’re happy.” Rosita said, sighing as she paused before adding, “But I will be needing her autograph before anything goes wrong.”

 

All three of the laughed and Nicole felt a warmth spreading in her chest. She had missed this, the feeling of content. College hadn’t been her choice, and being her was driving the idea of happiness out of her, but Waverly had managed to put it back in her within only a few weeks.

 

“Oh god, have you seen this?” Rosita asked as she turned her phone around to show Nicole, the redhead ignoring the jealously that pumped through her system as she saw the photos of Waverly and Champ trending on twitter.

 

“Yeah, her manager asked her to go with him for the press, it’s not what it looks like.” Nicole explained and Rosita smiled softly, clearly not quiet believing Nicole’s words.

 

But Nicole trusted Waverly, she knew it wasn’t what it looked like, but that didn’t make the pang of jealously leave.

 

“Anyway,” Chrissy said, clearing her throat in an attempt to evaporate the tension that had filled the room. “How about we go get a drink, it’s been a while.” 

 

“Sounds good.” Rosita said, her eyes flicking across to Nicole.

 

“I’m down for a drink.” Nicole said as the three of them stood up. “Where are we going?”

 

“Where do you think?” Chrissy said with a wink, Nicole’s cheeks flushing with the memories.

 

It had been an only a few weeks since Nicole was here with Waverly, the two of them dancing through their intoxication, a game that had turned into a reality. Now the redhead sat at the bar as she watched her friends dance. She was far too sober to join in, and all she wanted was to dance with Waverly, so instead she drowned her sorrows on the drinks Chrissy had offered to buy her.

 

“Someone who drinks like that is clearly trying to forget something, or someone” Shae said as she wiped the bar in front of Nicole.

 

“Long-time no see.” Nicole replied, ignoring the hint of a question in her ex’s statement.

 

“Yeah something like that.” Shae said with a sigh, her eyes quickly scanning the length of Nicole, “How have you been?”

 

“Not too bad, yourself?” Nicole asked out of curtesy more than anything, not caring how Shae had been in the slightest.

 

“I’ve been alright.” Shae said with a smile that Nicole had tripped head over heels for once. “You here alone or…?” Shae began before catching a glimpse of Rosita and Chrissy stumbling across the dancefloor.

 

“Just going to pretend I don’t know them, so yeah I’m here alone.” Nicole said as she downed the rest of her drink.

 

“What’s a girl like you doing here alone?” Shae asked, her voice laced with a familiar tone that Nicole wished she’d never heard in the first place.

 

Nicole didn’t reply, simply looking at Shae, questioning what the brunette was playing at. They had dated on and off in freshman year of college, Shae repeatedly messing her around, saying one thing while she meant another, but Nicole never saw it. She always saw the best in people until the broke her, then she could see who they really were.

 

Nicole still didn’t believe Shae was a bad person, per say, but she knew better to mess around with her or let her closer than arm’s length.

 

“I’m going to go dance with my friends.” Nicole said blunting, putting down her empty glass and joining Rosita and Chrissy on the dancefloor.

 

* * *

 

 

Once the premier ended, Waverly made her way to Nicole’s, smiling as she read the highly inappropriate message Nicole had last sent her, glad she didn’t read it in the company of other.

 

By the time she made it to Nicole, the early hours of the morning were approaching, and she was expecting an extremely sleepy Nicole to answer the door to her apartment, not a very tipsy Nicole who was dancing along to the music that blasted from the kitchen.  
  
“Hi babe.” Nicole said with a huge smile, placing a kiss on Waverly’s cheek, the brunette being surrounded by the scent of whiskey radiating from Nicole.

 

“What are you doing?” Waverly said through laughter as Nicole danced her way back into the flat, Waverly following, seeing Rosita and Chrissy sat on the couch, swaying along to the music.

 

“Dancing.” Nicole replied as she skipped back over to Waverly, sliding her arms around the brunette’s waist as began to sway. Nicole tried to keep in time with the music, but when sober she had a hard time with rhythm, so drunk, it wasn’t great.

 

“Goodnight guys.” Rosita said as she stumbled to her bedroom, Chrissy having fallen asleep on the couch.

  
“Night.” Waverly called back, Nicole not registering Rosita’s voice, her mind consumed by Waverly.

 

“Do you want to go to bed?” Waverly asked, Nicole shaking her head, pulling Waverly closer so that their bodies were flushed together.

 

“I want to dance with you.” Nicole sad with a shy smile, a blush creeping onto her cheeks that made Waverly’s heart melt.

 

“Okay then.” Waverly whispered in response, wrapping her arms around Nicole’s waist, her hands gripping at the redhead’s hips as she took over, controlling the way Nicole moved against her. Soon enough, Nicole caught onto the way her hips should move, Waverly’s grip getting lighter.

 

Waverly had always loved dancing, there was something so freeing that meant it became a form of escapism for her. When life got too much for her, she’d dance, and for a moment she could escape reality. But dancing now, with Nicole, was so much more than that. Intimacy did not even begin to explain what she had with Nicole right now.

  
She felt as if it was just the two of them, as if the world had become nothing but a background noise.

 

The alcohol that flowed through Nicole’s veins gave her no shame, her eyes glued to Waverly’s, never looking away.

 

“I missed you.” Waverly whispered, knowing Nicole wouldn’t remember in the morning.

 

“I missed you too.” Nicole replied, her words strung together, making a smile spread on Waverly’s face.

 

“I really like you.” Waverly said through a deep breath.

 

“I really like you too.”

 

* * *

 

When Nicole woke the next morning, her head was pounding, her limbs aching and she had no idea why.

 

“Good morning baby.” Waverly said as she sat on the edge of the bed, leaning down and placing a gentle kiss on Nicole’s forehead.

 

“Morning.” Nicole mumbled, her eyes squinting as the light from the window burned them.

 

“I need to go in ten minutes, my cars waiting, but I needed to make sure you’ll be okay?” Waverly said, Nicole sitting up slowly in response, ignoring the aching in her head.

 

“Are you sure you have to go?” Nicole whispered, earning a soft smile from Waverly.

 

‘Unfortunately, I think I’ll get fired if I don’t.” Waverly said, her fingers running down Nicole’s arms gently, smiling as the redhead shivered in response.

 

“I’ll walk you to the door.” Nicole said, pushing the blanket off her before Waverly’s hands held hers, stopping her movements.

  
“No, it’s okay, you must have a really bad hangover, I can see myself out.” Waverly said quickly, trying to get Nicole back into bed.

 

“Baby, I want to walk down with you.” Nicole said, trying to say that she wanted to spend every second she could with Waverly without actually saying those words.

 

Waverly didn’t say anything in response, simply moving her hands away from Nicole, letting the redhead get out of her bed and follow Waverly out of the apartment door and down the stairs.

 

“I’ll see you later.” Waverly said, kissing Nicole quickly before opening the door.

 

The second the door opened, the flashing began, Nicole’s stomach dropping as she saw the crowd of cameras waiting for Waverly outside.

 

The second the first flash happened, Waverly dropped her head on instinct, walking straight through the crowd that followed her. Nicole stood still, barely noticing the few cameras that had stayed behind to take photos of her. Once Waverly made it to her car, Nicole slammed the door close, letting go of a breath she didn’t know she was holding.

 

Nicole knew that Waverly hadn't wanted anyone to know about them, and as she walked up the stairs she pulled out her phone to message Waverly, her eyes catching the message from Rosita, _have you seen?_.

   
Nicole clicked on the link and saw a livestream of Waverly leaving the apartment, the replies already filled with speculations, some not too far from the truth.

 

Whether Waverly had wanted the world to know about them or not, it looks like they just found out, and there was no backing out this one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, the press is going to have fun with that one next chapter...
> 
> let me know if you are enjoying this so far, or just say hi in the comments or yell at me, whatever you want.
> 
> (promise the next update will be on time)
> 
> <3


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so I know it's been forever (and I know I always say this), I'm sorry, life just got the better of me so I haven't been writing too much. but I promise, even if updates are spaced out a little unevenly, I will finish this fic <3

 

 

_i would do anything for you_

 

* * *

“I told you to be more careful, I told you this was a bad idea.” Mercedes said as she paced around her office in the overdramatic way she always did, sighing loudly every so often.

 

“Sorry.” Waverly mumbled, hearing Mercedes sigh from the other side of the room.

 

“You said that already.” Mercedes said calmly as she came and sat on the desk in front of Waverly. “I’m just trying to think of a way we can fix this.”

 

“What is there to fix?” Waverly said, her eyebrows bunching together as she questioned Mercedes statement.

 

“Well if we don’t do something there will be cameras at Nicole’s house all day every day, that poor girl will never know a day without someone following her and asking her questions about you. Every nosey interviewer is going to ask you about her, about your sexuality. If word gets out that the paparazzi did in fact stumble upon exactly what it looks like, then you could lose work, contracts and god knows what.” Mercedes said without a breath in-between her words, as if she had this speech ready, as if she knew this was coming for a lot longer than she had let on. “I know it’s awful, this business is awful, but it is what it is.”

 

Waverly stayed silent for a moment, her brain trying to take in Mercedes words, trying to process what was happening. The last thing Waverly wanted was cameras following Nicole like they followed her, Waverly wouldn’t wish the lack of privacy on anyone.

 

“How do we fix this then?” Waverly asked, looking up at Mercedes for the first time since she walked into her office, the redhead having a small smile on her lips.

 

“I’m not too sure.” Mercedes said slowly, but she was holding something back, Waverly could see it. “I do have one idea, but you’re not going to like it.”

 

“What is it?” Waverly asked, worried by the glint in Mercedes eyes.

 

“Champ.” Mercedes said, pausing as Waverly’s fell in time with the realisation of what her agent was suggesting.

 

“No, absolutely not.” Waverly said quickly, before Mercedes could continue.

 

“What other option do we have?” Mercedes asked and Waverly opened her mouth to answer before slowly shutting it again as she realised she had no other ideas.

  
“There must be something, anything else.” Waverly said softly, more to herself than Mercedes, but it sparked the conversation into life. The two of them spoke everything through for hours, Waverly coming up with every idea under the sun and Mercedes showing her how it wouldn’t work.

 

Waverly didn’t want to have to be seen with Champ, she didn’t want to pretend to fall for him whilst she fell for Nicole, but she knew she couldn’t drag Nicole into the world she had submerged herself in.

 

“How is this going to work then?” Waverly asked, ignoring the sick feeling flowing through her.

 

“Well, you two will have to make a few public appearances together a week, go to premiers together, smile for the camera, you know how it works.” Mercedes said, as if she done this before. She probably had, Waverly had no idea how long Mercedes had been in the business, but she guessed that she had most definitely done something like this before.

 

“What about Nicole?” Waverly questioned slowly, noticing the lack of mention of her girlfriend, the reason she was agreeing to this.

 

“You can explain to her what we’ve discussed, and you can explain why you can’t see her at her place more than once a week, but even that is not a good idea if we're being honest.”

 

“I can’t see her at her place anymore?” Waverly said, her voice filled with a shock of sorts, Mercedes simply raising her eyebrows in response as Waverly realised what she had said. “Right, why would I spend all my time with my friend when I could be with Champ.”

 

“I’ll get Champ in tomorrow morning so we can sort out a contract.” Mercedes said as she sat at her desk, pulling out her laptop.

 

“Is a contract really necessary?” Waverly asked, her heart hammering in her chest as this all became so real so fast.

 

“It’s better safe than sorry, if Champ opens his mouth and tells everyone that you’re with Nicole, or that the two of you are simply faking the relationship, without a contract there is nothing we can do, with a contract, we can take every dime that man has to his name.” Mercedes said with a wicked smile, Waverly sinking into her seat, wishing she could go back to last night, to Nicole.

 

“Okay, if you could get Nicole in tomorrow as well.” Mercedes said after a moment of silence, not lifting her eye from her laptop as she typed out what Waverly assumed was an email.

 

“Why?” Waverly said hesitantly, not sure if she was missing something obvious at this point, her thought process was completely broken from the last few hours.

 

“So she can sign a couple things.” Mercedes said causally.

  
“The whole point of this is to keep Nicole out of this, so no, I won’t be bringing her anywhere near here.” Waverly said as steadily as she could, terrified of Mercedes reaction. But the redhead just nodded.

 

“As long as she doesn’t say anything and you two have a story sorted that you both stick to.” Mercedes said, Waverly nodding in response, her hands unclenching slightly in her lap.

 

“She would never say anything to anyone.” Waverly said softly, more to herself than the other woman in the room.

 

“For your sake, I really hope you’re right.” Mercedes said, lowering her laptop lid a little before she carried on speaking, “She hasn’t told anyone, right?”

 

_Shit._

 

Waverly knew Nicole wasn’t one to flaunt her, she knew Nicole didn’t see her as the Waverly Gibson the world saw, she wasn’t something that Nicole would show off for her fame, but that didn’t mean no one else knew. Rosita and Chrissy knew, and the two of them didn’t look as if they were ones to avoid gossip.

 

It would explain why there were cameras at Nicole's, even though Waverly really hoped that it was them who had let it slip, but it would be an explanation.

 

“No,” Waverly said with her best fake smile, Mercedes falling gullible to the act. “she hasn’t told anyone.”

 

* * *

 

It was another hour before Waverly made it back to her apartment, the paparazzi waiting for her outside once she left Mercedes office, and what was supposed to be a ten minute journey was turned into a marathon.

 

Once the flashing stopped and Waverly could exhale, she pulled out her phone, smiling to herself as she saw messaged from Nicole light up her lockscreen.

 

Waverly didin’t read the messages, instead facetiming Nicole, her heart rate already increasing as the thought of Nicole picking up, the thought of simply seeing Nicole had Waverly feeling giddy.

 

Whilst she couldn’t admit it to herself, Waverly was already in deeper than she thought she ever could be.

 

When Nicole picked up, Waverly felt the huge smile spread across her face.  
  


“Hi baby.” Nicole said, running her hands through her hair, Waverly’s eyes following the redhead’s hands, dropping to the bicpes that appeared at the corner of her screen.

 

“Did you call just to stare at me?” Nicole says with a hint of smugness as Waverly’s face blushs a deep pink.

 

“No, I just got, uh- distracted.” Waverly tries to recover, clearing her throat, earning a small laugh from Nicole. “I actually called because I had a meeting with Mercedes about what happened this morning.” The smile fell from Nicole’s face.

 

Nicole didn’t speak, waiting for Waverly to continue, sensing that Waverly hadn’t found the words she was looking for. Waverly wasn’t sure there was any way to say that she was going to have to pretend to date a guy while she was in public so that Nicole’s life wasn’t the centre of attention of the media, but she had to get it out somehow.

 

“I know you don’t have much experience with the world following your every move and the media being so far up your ass that it’s surprising they can see anything,” Waverly began, light hearted, earning a small laugh from Nicole which made Waverly’s entire body relax. _Maybe this won’t be too bad._ “But I promise you, it really isn’t as glamourous as it seems. It’s so tiring, knowing that every single thing you do or say is sticking with you forever, and every person with an internet connection could be looking at me, or juding me. I don’t want that for you, because I know what it takes to deal with this, and I know you're more than strong enough, but I couldn’t watch you get dragged into all of this, I wouldn’t be able to…” Waverly trail of at the thought of what could happen to them. If the world knew, if the camreas followed them, if Nicole lost the life she had for Waverly. Nicole could grow to resent her, resent Waverly for the life she lost, for the life she couldn’t get back, unless she left.

 

Waverly pushed the thought aside.

 

“I just need you to trust me when I say it’s better to stay away from everything like that.” Waverly continued, but she wasn’t looking at Nicole anymore, her eyes glazed over in fear of what could have been.

 

“I trust you.” Nicole said, as if she could see Waverly losing her mind on the possibilities of what if’s.

 

“Mercedes said the best thing to do is distract them, to draw them away from you.” Waverly paused, taking a deep breath before she said the next sentence. “So, I’m going to announce a relationship with Champ Hardy and act as if we are together.”

 

There was a brief silence as the words settled between them, Nicole processing Waverly’s words as Waverly held her breath.

  
“Okay.” Nicole said, nodding her head slowly.  
  


Waverly felt the weight of the world lift off her shoulders.

  
“Okay?” Waverly repeated in disbelief that Nicole accepted what was happening in a matter of seconds when it had taken Waverly hours.

 

“Okay.” Nicole echoed, a small smile reappearing on her lips. “If that’s what needs to be done, then that’s okay. I trust you, Waverly, I really do and if you think it’s best for me to stay away from the spotlight for now, then I will. And if Champ’s the best way to make that happen, as much as I don't like the idea, then that's what you do.”

 

Waverly felt the tears forming in her eyes as Nicole spoke. The redhead said those words with such ease, as if she’d do whatever it took to be with Waverly.

 

“Babe, are you good?” Nicole said, her voice still bright but there was a slight concern behind her words. “Because if you were expecting me to be more jealous or fight harder, I can totally do that.” Nicole said, Waverly laughing as the tears ran down her cheeks.

  
“You’re so amazing.” Waverly whispered as her laughter died down, Nicole staring at her through the screen as though she was the only thing that mattered.

 

“So, I’ve been told.” Nicole’s voice laced in a smugness that effected Waverly more than she would like to admit.

 

“I’ve got to sign a contract tomorrow with Champ before I go to set.” Waverly said as she kicked off her shoes, walking over to her bedroom, feeling Nicole’s eyes on her through the screen as she did so.

 

“What’s going to be on the contract?” Nicole asked, leaning back onto her bed, holding the phone out above her, Waverly feeling her heart flutter at how relaxed Nicole looked, at how beautiful she was without even trying.

 

“I’m not sure, I just know it’s so he can’t back out and ruin my career.”

 

“Sounds necessary then.” Nicole said with a small laugh

 

“I guess so.” Waverly said with a sigh, lying down on her bed, relaxing as she let the tension leave her body, but within a second it came flooding back. “Rosita and Chrissy, they didn’t tell anyone about us, did they?” Waverly asked carefully, trying her best to sounds as though she wasn’t accusing Nicole’s friends of anything they weren’t guilty of. Even if Waverly put on a front, acted as if she was trying to come across a certain way whilst she felt another, she knew Nicole could see past it. Nicole could read her like a book, see past the act that thousands fell for, and it terrified Waverly.

 

“I told them not to and they said they wouldn’t say anything, and I trust them enough to believe that.” Nicole said, conviction in her voice.

 

“Okay, good.” Waverly replied, making the decision to not mention that she had lied to Mercedes about them knowing. If Nicole trusted them, then Waverly would too. Throughout her years of acting, she had learnt very quickly that trust was nothing but an illusion used to manipulate those around you, but despite every instinct drilled into her, she trusted Nicole, more than she trusted anyone.

 

“Anyway,” Nicole cleared her throat, pulling Waverly from her thoughts. “How long have you got left filming?”

 

“Just over a week.” Waverly said, her heart rate picking up at the thought. The closer they came to a break in shooting meant the closer to the premeire of the show, which was always a daunting moment. The concept of spending hours on set, for all the money that is put into a show being done, only for the world to hate it and a calleclation to occur.

 

“And after that week?” Nicole said, her voice deepening sligihty, making Waverly’s sudden worries melt away.

 

“I have nothing until it picks back up.” Waverly paused, “ _If_ it gets picked back up.”

 

“Of course, it will baby, I’m sure it’s amazing.” Nicole’s serenity made Waverly’s cheeks blush.

  
  
“I really hope so.”  
  


The two of them elapsed into a conversation that seemed never ending, time becoming a mere construction that was long forgotten. Before they knew it, it was the early hours of the morning, the sunlight reappearing under the fabric of the blinds.  
  
“We should really try get some sleep.” Waverly said as Nicole yawned, again.

 

“We should.” Nicole repeated, rubbing her eyes as she tried to keep them open for just a while longer.

 

Waverly was ready to say goodnight when Nicole spoke up, “When can I next see you?”.

 

“Um,” Waverly stalled, not knowing the answer. Mercedes had told her to back off for a while, but as she looked at the redhead through her phone, she knew that was impossible. “I don’t know because I’m on set for the week and it’s tweleve hour days.”

 

“I’m perfectly happy to see you at whatever hours of the day.” Nicole said, her voice filled with a hope that Waverly didn’t want to take away, but she had to.  
  
“It’s probably best if I’m not at yours as often, now that the media knows that it’s somewhere I could be.” Waverly said slowly, doing her best to ignore the way the smile on her girlfriends face faltered. “But you can come to mine next week when I’m done filming?”

 

“That sounds perfect.” Nicole said as she stifled another yawn, Waverly laughing quietly.

 

“You need sleep, you have college tomorrow.” Waverly’s voice turned soft, watching Nicole’s eyes as the fluttered between open and closed.

 

“Doesn’t mean I’m going to go.” Nicole said, her words slurring together in a way that made Waverly’s chest warm.

 

“You’re awful.”

 

“I thought I was _amazing,_ if I recall that correctly.” Nicole’s eyes were closed now, the phone balanced on the blanket beside her.

 

“Shut up.” Waverly whispered, watching as sleep slowly took over Nicole.

 

Waverly watched Nicole for a moment, before hanging up the call, knowing her own alarm would go off in an hour and Nicole definitely would not want to be woken by that.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope you enjoyed, please let me know if you're still reading and how you don't hate me for not updating in forever okay thanks 
> 
> (also if I don't reply to comments, I stg I see them all and they mean so much and help me so much I can't put it into words, but sometimes I just forget to reply/I get overwhelmed and don't know how to reply, BUT I PROMISE I SEE AND LOVE THEM ALL)
> 
> love you all 
> 
> x


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